


Solstice magic

by Andithiel



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Getting Together, Harry Potter Epilogue What Epilogue | EWE, M/M, Midsummer, Oblivious Harry, Pining, Summer Solstice, Superstition, Traditions, Unspeakable Draco Malfoy, Unspeakable Harry Potter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-19
Updated: 2020-06-19
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:55:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,258
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24806554
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Andithiel/pseuds/Andithiel
Summary: Unspeakables Potter and Malfoy are in Sweden to celebrate a genuine Swedish midsummer's eve, including traditional outfits, silly dancing and old superstitions. Draco is not amused and Harry fails at keeping his feelings in check upon seeing Draco in a flower crown.
Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter
Comments: 22
Kudos: 165





	Solstice magic

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MarchnoGirl](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarchnoGirl/gifts).



> I don’t know if you remember, Ale, but around Christmas you asked me about Swedish traditions and I told you we dance around the Christmas tree, which you found very evocative. And I said “then you should see what we do for midsummer!” and that’s when the idea to this little ficlet was born. (I think I also sent you a video of Alexander Skarsgård doing the frog dance)
> 
> I hope you like this!
> 
> Thank you son much to [Scarshavestories](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Scarshavestories/pseuds/Scarshavestories) for helping me beta this and giving me the encouragement I needed, you’re a real treasure ❤️❤️❤️
> 
> For anyone who wants to see [the midsummer pole there’s a picture here](https://sv.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midsommarst%C3%A5ng#/media/Fil:Midsommarst%C3%A5ng.jpg)

“I hate you,” Draco hissed out of the corner of his mouth, hand on hip.

Harry tried his best to not look at the way Draco’s waist was accentuated by the navy blue double breasted waistcoat he was wearing, or how his breeches drew attention to his crotch area. “What did I do now?”

“If I remember correctly, you told me we were going to Sweden to study the way they traditionally celebrate summer solstice, for our research into solstice magic.”

“Yes?”

Draco huffed. “Yes, he says like he’s not already made me wear this ridiculously warm outfit, and he isn’t now expecting me to run around a giant phallus singing about a virgin riding a carousel.”

Harry snorted, glancing at all the people around them who were standing in a circle around a great pole that looked like someone tried to draw the deathly hallows but messed up. It looked more like a triangle on a stick with a circle at each end, covered in greenery, and Harry had to admit it looked a bit like a giant penis had been stuck in the ground. To top it all off, everyone present was repeatedly kicking thin air in front of them in time with the violin and accordion music.

“I’m sorry, Draco, Luna was the one who told me to contact Ebba about going to a genuine Swedish midsummer celebration. I had no idea this was what was in store.”

Draco huffed again, and this time, he actually put his nose up in the air. 

Harry leaned in closer to him. “Can’t you at least try to have some fun?”

“Fun? _Fun?!_ I absolutely _refuse_ to participate in this… this blasphemy! It is beneath me to taint an ancient tradition like this, I am not sinking to those levels quite yet thank you very much,” Draco sniffed, angrily pulling at the hems of his poofy sleeved shirt.

Harry sighed, and with what he hoped was an apologetic smile, he turned to Ebba, who was staring at them both with her mouth hanging open.

“Is he always like this?” she said, nodding in Draco’s direction.

“I’m afraid so,” Harry said with a shrug, and Draco made an indignant noise.

“How do you stand it?”

“You know…” Harry said, thinking about Draco and his antics, from his obnoxiousness to his thoughtfulness. He thought about how Draco always seemed to know when Harry was down and needed a pick me up, or when he instead needed to be left alone to brood until he’d snapped out of it. He thought about how, despite their initial fears that it would all go to shit when they were teamed up as Unspeakables, they worked together well now, because they had become so good at reading each other. He smiled again, more genuine now. “He has his virtues.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed how Draco’s shoulders, which had been tense while he pretended not to listen to them, dropped the tiniest bit at Harry’s words. But of course, Draco could never admit when he was behaving like a prick, let alone stop doing it, and soon he started scratching below his knees.

“Ugh, these socks are killing me.”

Harry looked at the white stockings Draco was wearing, and at the ribbons with pom pom tassels around the knees.

“They bring out your calves, though,” he said without thinking first.

Draco’s eyes snapped to him. “My… what?”

Harry felt his cheeks heating, fully aware that this was not something you were supposed to say to your strictly professional partner slash friend. He cleared his throat, and he tried to look completely unaware of what he’d said as he met Draco’s gaze. “What?”

Draco opened his mouth to say something, but just then, a new song started, and Ebba grabbed Harry and Draco’s hands.

“Come on! You have to do this one, it’s definitely tradition!” she said as she dragged them into the circle of dancing people.

Harry glanced at Draco and he couldn’t keep the laughter inside at his look of utter indignation.

“Are we—? What is—? _Are we seriously supposed to hop around and pretend to be frogs?!_ ”

* * *

“And so you just turn this handle and it will make the plate inside spin, so the potatoes will rub against the sides and each other, and the peel will come off!”

Harry looked with fond amusement as Ebba showed Draco the potato-peeling device. Draco had recovered from the shock that was the traditional dance around the midsummer pole (several glasses of wine had undoubtedly helped, along with Draco threatening everybody on site that “if any pictures of this surface later someone will pay!”), and now he was trying hard to hide his excitement at the plastic device that Ebba was demonstrating. 

A few months into their partnership, Harry had discovered that Draco was fascinated by Muggle things. Harry especially remembered when Draco had found a corkscrew and Harry had had to save him before he took anyone’s eye out. Now Draco’s whole body had perked up in his eagerness to try this potato peeler thing himself, he was almost dancing on the spot. Or well, by Draco standards that was, anyone other than Harry would probably think that Draco was about to have a seizure by the way he was trembling. 

Ebba let Draco take the handle with an encouraging nod, and he started to turn the handle with so much force that the entire bowl almost tipped over.

“Oh, sorry!” Ebba said, laughing. “I forgot to mention you need to keep one hand on top of it. And not go too quickly.”

Draco looked up at Harry, but Harry quickly returned to his task of rinsing the strawberries, pretending he hadn’t seen anything. But he had. And he hadn’t missed the adorable way Draco had flushed after his blunder. Harry bit his lip to keep from smiling like the besotted fool he was.

They decided to eat outside. Ebba told them that the weather was usually unpredictable this time of year, but since they had a roof over their veranda, they decided to risk it.

“At least we won’t have to rush inside if it starts to rain!” Ebba said with a laugh, beckoning them to sit down and help themselves.

Dinner was nice, but the amount of raw fish made Harry shudder slightly. He quickly decided to stick to the food that their hosts called “the kid’s menu”, with Swedish meatballs and tiny sausages called “prince sausage” for some reason. Draco, however, was really enjoying all the food, especially the cinnamon and clove pickled herring served with sour cream and chopped chives.

Harry had a hard time keeping his eyes off Draco, who was wearing a beautiful flower crown that Ebba’s friend Saga had made for him while they were preparing the food. Harry had been given one as well, but he doubted he looked as good in his as Draco did. With the sunlight shining behind him, and the purple and yellow flowers adorning his white blonde hair, he looked positively ethereal. They’d been drinking beer and _nubbe_ (which Harry had figured out was basically hard liquor with various spices, taken in tiny shot glasses after you had sung a little song) and Draco was a bit flushed from the alcohol, his eyes open and clear. Harry had tried to hold back on the drinking, partly because they were still on an assignment, but mostly because he didn’t want to lose control around Draco and accidentally blurt out his feelings.

“What do you say, Harry?”

Harry startled at Ebba’s voice, and when he turned to her, he realised she must’ve been trying to get his attention for some time.

“Sorry,” he said, trying his best to focus on her, which was hard since he thought he saw Draco going pink, a thing he loved to watch. He cleared his throat. “Sorry, I think I was somewhere else.”

“I’d say,” Ebba snickered with a sideways glance at Draco, and now Harry was the one blushing. “I was just wondering if you’d like to accompany Draco and me for a late night walk while Saga cleans up, and I can tell you about the superstitions regarding the midsummer night.”

“Oh, yeah, sure. That sounds lovely,” he muttered, looking down at his plate to avoid having to meet Draco’s eyes or see the knowing looks Ebba and Saga were giving each other. 

* * *

“I thought this could be a fun tradition for the two of you,” Ebba told them with a smug smile. 

It was nearing midnight and they were out in a field, surrounded by trees. Despite the late hour and the fact that the sun had set an hour ago, it was still rather light, but there was a chill in the air. Harry noticed Draco shivering a bit, since he had long ago changed into his Muggle linen trousers and cotton shirt (with regular sleeves). 

“In the days when society revolved around farming, the midsummer night was believed to be one of the most magical nights of the year, where our world and the supernatural were extra close to each other,” Ebba told them with her voice lowered mysteriously. “Wonderous things were said to happen, and people were especially fond of making predictions about their love life.”

Harry squirmed a bit at the teasing smile Ebba directed at him, and he glanced over at Draco, who seemed to be listening with rapt attention.

“And how was that achieved?”

“Well, the most common way, one that people use to this day, although no one takes it very seriously anymore, is to pick seven kinds of flowers, and then put them under your pillow. And then you’re supposed to dream about who you’ll end up marrying.”

Harry rubbed his neck awkwardly and Draco cleared his throat.

“Although I have to say, I doubt either of you need to find out who you’ll marry,” Ebba said slyly and hopped down from the rock they were all sitting on. “I’m getting back inside to help Saga take care of the dishes. I’ll see you later!”

Frowning, Harry watched her skip away through the high grass, her white dress billowing around her legs, in stark contrast to her wellies.

“What do you think she meant by th—” Harry started, turning to Draco but stopping mid sentence. Without him noticing, Draco had edged closer and now his face was mere inches away from Harry’s. Harry forgot how to speak when he looked into those soft grey eyes. It was a rare thing to see them this close, see all the intricate patterns, all the different shades they held. Harry swallowed.

“I was a bit cold,” Draco murmured, his gaze dropping to Harry’s throat.

“Yeah I noticed,” Harry said hoarsely. “Do you, er—”

“My lips are cold, too,” Draco said, batting his eyelashes at Harry.

“Your…?” 

Harry blinked, extremely confused by this change in Draco’s behaviour. Sure, they were good friends, and relaxed around each other, but the physical contact Draco had graced Harry with so far had consisted of accidental brushes of hands when he’d given Harry a cup of tea, or a friendly shove now and then. Nothing more. And now he was pressing himself as close to Harry as he could without actually sitting on his lap.

Then Harry realised. “Draco, are you still drunk?”

“Yeah,” Draco sighed, leaning back, away from Harry’s personal space. “But I guess I’m not nearly drunk enough, because that rejection really stung.”

Now Harry was confused again. “Rejection? What rejection?”

Draco slumped, fidgeting with the hem of his shirt. “Shit, I should’ve taken the bait and laughed it off as a drunken mistake,” he mumbled, almost inaudibly. Then he straightened up. “No. You know what, Harry? Okay, I’ll admit I’m still a bit drunk. But not much. Only enough to get rid of my inhibitions. Only enough to go after what I want.” He looked straight into Harry’s eyes, his chin tilted up in defiance.

Harry swallowed, because his throat suddenly felt extremely dry. “What— What is it that you want?”

Draco scoffed, shaking his head. “And to think I usually defend you when people call you oblivious.”

Harry couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Draco thought that Harry had just rejected him. Which meant that… he’d been serious with that cheesy come on.

But one look at Draco made Harry realise that he needed to take the initiative now. He leaned closer, murmuring into Draco’s ear. “This thing that you want, does it include a pining fool who can’t take his eyes off you even when you’re behaving like a prick and complaining about how people celebrate the summer solstice?”

Draco shivered and turned his head so that his nose was brushing Harry’s, his breath ghosting over Harry’s face as he spoke. “I never behave like a prick, you take that back, Potter.”

Harry chuckled, feeling giddy but still surprised that this was finally happening. “Make me,” he whispered, tilting his head to the side and parting his lips, heart pounding violently against his ribcage. When Draco brought his hand into Harry’s hair and his mouth found Harry’s, Harry was seriously afraid that his heart would beat out of his chest.

Maybe Ebba had been right, Harry thought as he slipped his tongue into Draco’s mouth and felt a thrill of excitement at the moan Draco responded with. Maybe they didn’t need any love predictions. Maybe this was all the solstice magic they needed tonight.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Comments and kudos are lovely ❤️
> 
> I'm also [on tumblr](https://andithiel.tumblr.com//)! Come say hi!


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